Tobacco Store Wooden Indians Fetch High Prices

KNOW YOUR ANTIQUES

October 22, 2010|By TERRY KOVEL

Wooden Indians have been displayed at tobacco stores since the 19th century. Store signs at that time were often pictorial because many customers could not read.

Mayan Indians introduced tobacco to Christopher Columbus and his crew in 1492, but no one understood how the dried leaves were used. However, by the 1500s, Englishmen and others were smoking or chewing tobacco. Legend has it that Sir Walter Raleigh gave some to Queen Elizabeth after his voyages.

By the 1800s, tobacco was used in most parts of the world and was an important agricultural crop. The wooden Indian figure was kept on the street to lure customers inside a tobacconist's store. Other advertising figures used through the years have included a Chinese man for a tea shop, and a jockey, baseball player, Uncle Sam or even Santa Claus for other businesses.

The best wooden Indians were carved in 3-D from a single rounded log. Some were later made of iron. The Indian chiefs, princesses and braves were painted and usually held a bundle of tobacco leaves or cigars.

It is claimed that more than 100,000 carved store figures were in use by 1900. But new laws forced the figures off sidewalks, and most were destroyed. A well-made, well-preserved antique wooden Indian sells today for thousands of dollars. The record price for a cigar-store figure is $542,400 for a Punch figure, an English comic character (not an Indian) attributed to Samuel Robb (1851-1928), a famous American carver.

A few flat Indians also are known. These are made from a flat board and can have shallow carving or just be painted cutout figures. These folk art pieces sell for much less than the 3-D carvings.

Q: I inherited an "Archie Bunker's Grandson Joey Stivic" doll, made by Ideal. It's in its original box with an instruction sheet and has never been played with. Is there any value to it?

A: The Joey Stivic doll was made by Ideal Toy Co. in 1976. Joey Stivic and Archie Bunker were characters on the TV series "All in the Family," which ran from 1971 to 1979. Joey's birth was featured on the show in December 1975. Ideal advertised the drink-and-wet doll as "physically correct." It caused a stir at the time because it was the first anatomically correct boy doll. Value: about $50.

Q: I recently acquired a pair of antique opera glasses. I hope you can tell me something about their history and value. The glasses were made by "Hirsch, Kahn & Co., Manufacturing Opticians, 333 Kearny St., San Francisco." That's what's embossed on the inside of the lid of the black leather case they came in. "Hirsch, Kahn & Co." is also imprinted on the eyepieces. The barrels, eyepieces and focus knob are mother-of-pearl. There's an engraving on the front plate that reads, "Frank to Kate, 89."

A: Opera glasses were very popular during the 19th century, when theater and opera played a larger part in the public's social life than they have since the advent of movies and television. The firm of Hirsch, Kahn & Co. was in existence for only 10 years, from 1886 to 1896. So the "89" engraved on your glasses probably means that the glasses were purchased and engraved as a gift in 1889. It also is likely that the glasses were sold by Hirsch, Kahn & Co. but were manufactured by another firm, probably a French one. Many American opticians ordered opera glasses from France but marked them with their own name. Most antique opera glasses like yours sell today for $100 to $200.

Collecting Tip

Look out for reworked antique jewelry. An Art Deco diamond bracelet with a large, colored center stone may have once been a watch.

Recent Prices

Prices are recorded from antiques shows, flea markets, sales and auctions nationwide and may vary by location.